Oliphaunts

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Oliphaunts were animals similar to -- but larger than -- elephants. In Middle-earth they were called mûmakil (singular mûmak) by the Men of Gondor. The word "oliphaunt" was only used by Hobbits.

The animal

Oliphaunts lived during the Third Age in the southern land of Harad, and were notably used in the Siege of Gondor and the subsequent Battle of the Pelennor Fields on March 15th, 3018 of the Third Age. They were big enough to carry structures similar to towers on their backs.

Mumakil came from somewhere in jungles of Far Harad, off any known maps of middle earth. Massive, often ferocious beasts, the Haradrim somehow tamed them to use as beasts of war; and the result was possibly the most brutally effective beast of war the Middle Earth ever saw.

The Haradrim strapped a massive, carriage-like tiered tower the the backs of these beasts, and from here expert Haradrim archers and spearmen hurled these projectiles down upon their enemies. The mumak itself, enraged and goaded by its cruel Haradrim masters, would charge through the enemy, trampling archer, swordsman and horse beneath its massive feet and sweeping aside men in its way with scything strokes of its great tusks.

Killing a Mumak was almost impossible--its rough, leathery hide made arrows realtively harmless, and any archers standing to take a shot would be an easy target for the archers on top of the Haradrim. Horses had a natural fear of the Mumak's so even the most skilled horsemen could not get close enough to strike at its great, trunk-like legs. The only known way to kill an Oliphaunt was to shoot it in the eye, which typically meant standing in front of it as it charged the archer, and thus a very difficult task to perform.

The oliphant is echoed in The Lord of the Rings by Boromir's horn and conterposed by Helm's horn and the horns of Buckland.

Inspiration

The most famous use of the oliphant is in The Song of Roland "The oliphant is set to Roland's Lips;" Roland fails to call for help at the Battle of Roncevaux in 778 until it is too late for him and his comrades.

Portrayals in adaptations

In the film version they are much, much bigger than today's elephants with 2 sets of big tusks and one set of tiny tusks.